New Node.js API will shield modules from JavaScript engine changes

Help is on the way for developers building native modules for Node.js, as well for those who want to swap out the underlying JavaScript engine powering the platform.

Currently, modules must be recompiled to work with new versions of Node.js and the JavaScript engine, which traditionally has been Google’s V8 engine. But N-API is about to make things easier by providing an API for linking in native add-ons. Independent of the underlying JavaScript runtime, N-API will be stable for the application binary interface (ABI) across Node versions, to insulate add-ons from changes in the underlying JavaScript engine. Modules compiled for one version of Node.js would then run on later versions with no need to recompile.

Help is on the way for developers building native modules for Node.js, as well for those who want to swap out the underlying JavaScript engine powering the platform.

Currently, modules must be recompiled to work with new versions of Node.js and the JavaScript engine, which traditionally has been Google’s V8 engine. But N-API is about to make things easier by providing an API for linking in native add-ons. Independent of the underlying JavaScript runtime, N-API will be stable for the application binary interface (ABI) across Node versions, to insulate add-ons from changes in the underlying JavaScript engine. Modules compiled for one version of Node.js would then run on later versions with no need to recompile.